In addition to addressing some specific concerns that have been raised recently, we would also like to remind parents of resources and information that is and will continue to be available to you and to pupils attending Appleton Academy.
School Meals
The Academy will have some exciting news to share later this week, or at the start of next week, about a new catering partner who will be joining us to provide school meals after half term. This change in provider follows a thorough tender process that has been going on for a number of weeks. We will be involving pupils, staff and parents in the roll out for the new provider, including offering taster sessions, enhanced information about the school meal offer, and more details of the nutritional guidance we and our catering partner will follow. There will also be fresh, new menus, and we believe this will lead to a more varied, and nutritious food offer.
However, we would also like to make it clear that the Academy and our catering partner provide a wide range of food and meal options every day, and these are available to everyone who wants them. There are items on the current menus that sell out quickly at lunchtime, but there is always an alternative available. The way the Academy and our catering partner manage our suppliers means that there is always enough food on site to ensure that all of our pupils who eat at school can access food every single day of the school year (even if it is not always their first choice of meal!). However, regarding food choices, we would also point out to parents and pupils that, if there is something your child is particularly fond of, they can pre-order food for lunch at break time. Pupils simply need to speak to our catering team at break time, and they will take the pupils name and place the pre-order ready for them to collect at lunchtime. Pre-order is and always has been open to all pupils and ensures that they are more often able to get the food they want. Pre-ordering will also assist in ensuring that pupils can quickly get their food and have time to enjoy this.
Bullying
The Academy has a robust Anti Bullying Policy, which is regularly reviewed by senior staff and governors. We also have an extensive pastoral staff team, which includes Assistant Heads of Year, who are non-teaching support staff who are always available in school, during lessons and at break and lunchtime, to speak with pupils about any concerns they have. Pupils can report bullying to any member of staff, and all of our staff (both teaching and non-teaching) are trained on how to deal with disclosures from pupils. If a child is concerned about bullying, they should particularly seek to discuss this with the staff they see most regularly, this includes Form Tutors, Class Teachers and Heads of Year. However, we would reiterate that they can discuss concerns with any member of staff, or with the member of staff they feel most comfortable talking to about this.
Our staff take bullying incredibly seriously, and the Academy has been awarded and commended for its work on anti-bullying strategies. Any report of bullying is acted upon and investigated immediately, and the Academy’s work to safeguard our pupils’ wellbeing was recognised in our recent Ofsted inspection.
We would also remind parents and pupils that, for those who do not always feel comfortable disclosing that they are being bullied or that someone else is making their school life difficult, the Academy signed up to TooToot and sent details about this to all parents and pupils in September. TooToot is a student voice platform, through which pupils can report bullying concerns to us anonymously. Reports made via TooToot will be sent to the school and responded to immediately. This resource has been purchased by the Academy for the benefit of our pupils and parents, and we would encourage you to use it.
All pupils have been provided with a username and log in details. If they have lost these, they can be provided again by our ICT Team. TooToot – https://tootoot.co.uk/ Letter to Parents originally sent in September 2021 – https://appletonacademy.co.uk/…/Tootoot-launch-letter…
SEN
Appleton Academy has a strong SEN Team, and we provide support to pupils and parents who have a wide range of needs and requirements for additional support. In addition to this, we also have a dedicated Resource Provision Unit on site, managed by Bradford Council, which has further strengthened our SEN offer.
Due to the level of demand for support services managed by other partners and organisations in the district, those we work with outside the Academy to manage SEN do have waiting lists. This sometimes requires us to provide support in school until these partners are able to provide specialist resources that we cannot. However, SEN is a priority in school, and we will support pupils with educational and additional needs, and their families, both in partnership with and independently of these other partners.
Mrs Wightman, Appleton’s SENCO, can be contacted directly by emailing charlotte.wightman@appletonacademy.co.uk. Mrs Wightman will endeavour to respond as soon as possible, usually within 48-72 hours. If the matter is an emergency, you can also call 01274 600550.
Accessing Support from School
In addition to the information and resources outlined above, the Academy has a dedicated Social Worker and Parental Involvement Officer employed on site – Sarah Hodgson and Emily Chesterman. Our social worker can be contacted by calling the switchboard or emailing info@appletonacademy.co.uk. Our Parental Involvement Officer can be emailed directly via: emily.chesterman@appletonacademy.co.uk.
Staff are also on duty before and after school and you can speak with them on the playground if you have any concerns or questions. We also fund a Safer Schools Police Officer, who is in school every Wednesday and can be contacted by emailing info@appletonacademy.co.uk. All of this information and details of other key staff and how to contact them are also always available on our website: https://appletonacademy.co.uk/about/staff/
